EC order on reservation a rap for UPA: BJP

New Delhi: BJP on Wednesday said the Election
Commission directive to the government to put on hold its
decision of giving 4.5 per cent reservation to minorities was
a slap on the UPA dispensation which it alleged was committing
an unconstitutional act for votebank politics.
"This is a slap on the Congress-led government which
was deliberately trying to play politics over the reservation
issue. The step was aimed at votebank politics and not for the
welfare of the minorities," BJP spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain
said.

He maintained that though the government knew well
that reservation on basis of religion would be struck down by
a Constitutional body like the Election Commission, it went
ahead with it to fool the minorities.

"Even on the Lokpal Bill, Finance Minister Pranab
Mukherjee had said that Parliament should pass the Bill and
its constitutionality and legality should be decided by the
courts," Hussain said.
The Lokpal Bill also sought to reserve "not less than
50 per cent of the seats for minorities" in the panel.

Hussain said the government was also aware that the
case of reservation on religious lines by Andhra Pradesh
government is pending in the court, yet it went ahead with an
eye on the Uttar Pradesh polls.

"Backwardness of minorities is due to wrong policies
of the Congress over the decades and not due to lack of
reservation. This directive is a big jolt to the government
and has exposed its attempt to offer sops to the minorities to
win their votes," Hussain said.